Mobile Man Sentenced to Two Years in Prison for Possessing a Firearm as a Convicted Felon

MOBILE, AL – A Mobile man was sentenced to 24 months in prison for illegally possessing a firearm as a convicted felon.

According to court documents, Derrick C. Busby, 34, was arrested by Mobile Police Department officers following a traffic stop on October 22, 2023. During the stop, officers saw marijuana on Busby’s lap and witnessed Busby chugging from a bottle of prescription-only promethazine syrup and swallowing marijuana. Officers searched Busby’s car, seizing, among other things, a loaded Taurus 9mm pistol, a loaded extended magazine, and a digital scale. The pistol had previously been reported stolen to the Daphne Police Department by its original owner in December 2022.

Busby admitted to police that he possessed the pistol, which he heard was stolen and might have been connected to a homicide. Busby further admitted that he was a convicted felon who was not supposed to be around guns. At the time Busby possessed the pistol, he had prior felony convictions for robbery and burglary. Those felony convictions made Busby’s possession of the pistol illegal under federal law.

U.S. Attorney Sean P. Costello of the Southern District of Alabama made the announcement.

The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives and the Mobile Police Department investigated the case.

Assistant U.S. Attorney Justin Roller prosecuted the case on behalf of the United States.

This case is part of Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN), a program bringing together all levels of law enforcement and the communities they serve to reduce violent crime and gun violence, and to make our neighborhoods safer for everyone. On May 26, 2021, the Department launched a violent crime reduction strategy strengthening PSN based on these core principles: fostering trust and legitimacy in our communities, supporting community-based organizations that help prevent violence from occurring in the first place, setting focused and strategic enforcement priorities, and measuring the results. For more information about Project Safe Neighborhoods, please visit justice.gov/PSN.